Declan Rice On Why He's A 'Big-Game Player' As Arsenal Eyes UCL, EPL Double

Declan Rice has opened up connected his improvement into a "big-game player" arsenic Arsenal hole for a historical Champions League last against Paris Saint-Germain. 

Having already secured the Premier League title, the England midfielder is present focused connected completing a legendary treble successful Budapest.

Rising To The Biggest Occasions

Rice is nary alien to European success, having antecedently captained West Ham to Europa Conference League glory.

However, arsenic helium prepares to pb Arsenal’s midfield successful the Champions League final, the stakes person ne'er been higher. The 27-year-old believes helium has developed the temperament required to thrive erstwhile the satellite is watching, labeling himself a specializer for the grandest stages successful satellite football.

"I would similar to accidental I'm a big-game player," Rice said successful interrogation with uefa.com during the build-up to the final. 

"When you play successful the biggest competitions, you request your players to measurement up astatine each azygous point, and not lone conscionable me. I deliberation our squad person done that implicit the past fewer years successful large games – we've stepped up, particularly successful the Champions League. There's a fewer of america that person got that successful us, and we're going to request that going into the last arsenic well."

Learning From Past Final Heartbreak

While Rice experienced the precocious of lifting a trophy successful Prague with the Hammers, his vocation has besides been marked by respective achy last defeats, including 2 European Championship losses with England. 

Rather than letting those failures measurement him down, the midfielder uses them arsenic substance to guarantee helium doesn't acquisition that "hurt" again. 

Rice insists that each nonaccomplishment stands him successful bully stead for the situation posed by Luis Enrique’s PSG side.

"I've mislaid a just fewer finals now: 2 EURO finals, the League Cup final. It hurts due to the fact that erstwhile you get to a final, you privation to triumph that trophy. But also, each the small losses that you instrumentality basal you successful truly bully stead. It makes you hungrier to privation to spell and triumph stuff, and hopefully that's what we tin support doing," the midfielder noted.

Chasing A Historic Double In Budapest

With a Premier League medal already secured, the absorption shifts wholly to the "beautiful trophy" that has eluded Arsenal passim their history. 

After falling to PSG successful the semifinals past season, Rice is adamant that the Gunners person learned the harsh lessons indispensable to spell 1 measurement further this clip around. He believes the squad is acceptable to "empty the tank" to guarantee they decorativeness the play connected the eventual high.

"PSG are a truly bully side. We played them implicit 2 legs past year. It could person gone either way. What did we larn from past season's semi-final defeat? That you've got to instrumentality your chances, due to the fact that we had plentifulness of them," Rice warned.

What An Opportunity

Rice was instrumental successful Arsenal's run to the Premier League title, ending a 22-year drought for the Gunners. He scored 4 goals and provided 7 assists successful 36 appearances successful the competition. 

The 27-year-old understands that reaching the Champions League last presents an unmissable accidental to yet unafraid the rubric that has eluded his team.

Rice said: "It's the biggest contention successful football. Champions League final, it gets nary bigger than that. What a chance, what an opportunity. It'll beryllium the past footwear of nine shot for the season, truthful to spell retired connected a precocious and springiness it perfectly everything.

2026 FIFA World Cup: How To Watch

The 2026 FIFA World Cup volition tally from June 11–July 19, 2026. Spread crossed 3 countries, the tourney volition culminate with the last connected July 19 astatine New York New Jersey Stadium successful East Rutherford, New Jersey. All 104 tourney matches volition aerial unrecorded crossed FOX (70) and FS1 (34) with each lucifer streaming unrecorded and on-demand wrong some the FOX One and the FOX Sports app. A grounds 40 matches, much than one-third of the tournament, volition aerial successful premier clip crossed FOX (21) and FS1 (19).

The opening lucifer connected June 11 betwixt Mexico and South Africa (3 p.m. ET) volition watercourse for escaped connected Tubi, arsenic good arsenic the USA's opening lucifer against Paraguay connected June 12 (9 p.m. ET).